The Keystone standardized testing causes stress to people every year as they come around and there is no way to avoid them, considering students need to pass the tests in order to graduate at Quakertown  Community Senior High School.

One of the many people that the tests have an impact on is Ethan Oberlander. When asked if the Keystones stressed him out, he answered, “Yes, they stress me out because of the fact that if I don’t pass them I can’t graduate high school,” most people have one idea of what the worst part about these tests is.

For Ethan he says that the worst part about the Keystones is the amount of information we have to retain and remember in order to pass. Some students have to remember a year or two of stuff they have learned. If they take a Biology Keystone and are not in Biology, anymore this may be double as hard as it should be already.

“My stress level goes so high that it’s hard to sleep at night knowing I have a huge test the next day,” Ethan replied. When Ethan was asked if he thought he would be better off without these mandatory tests he stated that he would absolutely be relieved if he never had to see them ever again.

He also said that he would feel so much relief if we got rid of the Keystone testing all together. He was asked if it mattered to him that the Keystones are mandatory, and he responded with this, “Yeah it does to me due to the fact that we have to pass them to graduate, which I think is unnecessary.”

Another person impacted by the testing is Elizabeth Campbell. She says that the testing does stress her out because of the unfair and unnecessary test taking that comes along every year that you continually fail.

When asked what the hardest or worst part about the Keystones for her was, Elizabeth responded, “Probably the Biology Keystones.” For some people it could be a certain test subject and for others it can be just the whole idea of testing and all of the subjects combined.

Elizabeth stated that her stress level sharply increases and ends up skyrocketing once the Keystones start rolling around.

She explained to me that she would be so much better off without the testing all together. She replied, “I would feel good about not having testing anymore.” Finally, when she was asked if the tests being mandatory bothered or affected her, she said a simple, “no.”